“Seeing death as the end of life is like seeing the horizon as the end of the ocean.”
― David Searls

Sunday, April 30, 2017

A Strike Out for Tragedy

I awoke to the sound of screams, only this time it wasn't from the other side. This was real life. I rushed to the window and saw sirens and people crowded around an intersection near across from Rainbow River. Confused, I rushed downstairs towards the scene of the accident.

An animal hospital vehicle was parked on the curb, surrounded by police officers and am ambulance.
A dog was tied to a tree, whimpering and howling, I recognized right away that it was Rory's. I began to hear EMT's conversing about the situation. "Looks like a young woman was hit by a car. Time of death is unknown". My heart sank and I suddenly fell short of breath. I noticed other neighbors coming to see what happened. What if this was all my fault? What if they're punishing my friends for not helping them sooner?

I ran for the cemetery, and as my breathing enhanced and my heart pounded to a more intense beat, I got glimpse of Rory. She smiled at me. Confused, I rubbed my eyes and tried to adjust my vision, but she stayed put. It's happening again. I noticed a leash in her hands, and without altering her facial expressions, she dropped the leash to her feet. She eventually vanished, and left the leash behind.

I walked towards the oak tree perched in the cemetery, and dug around the roots until I uncovered the turquoise necklace I'd so anxiously attempted to forget. It was all coming together now. If you haven't caught on, I am a medium, not by choice of course but nonetheless an inevitable characteristic. The problem is, I cannot help them the way they desire. I can barely talk to alive people. Their voices haunt me, their memories dehumanize me. After all this time, I decided I'd finally help them in a way I never thought before, I would set them free, by setting myself free.

I lay the necklace on the moist ground, and wrapped it in the Psalm I took from the Bible at the church pew. "Let me truly find rest in you lord". Without hesitation, I set it ablaze. "Amen" I whispered.

I walked back to the scene of the crime. I watched as Rory's body, now veiled in a white blanket, was carried away. I walked on until finally, I saw Peter, tied to a tree. I crouched beside him, allowing him to smell the leash. Eventually he calmed himself, and I placed the leash on him. We walked away in silence. I noticed the whispers of others around me, but for the first time in what seemed like forever, they were whispers of the living. I smiled and took Peter home with me.